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"How real are internet friendships?"

ShiningDarkness said:
I believe that internet friendships are just as normal as physical friendships. In fact, on an internet relationship one can get a deeper connection with another person if they are both true to each other.
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I agree. The longest I've been friend with a person in real life is 11 years. With a friend from the internet, its about 13 years.

I have many internet friends in many country and I visited alot of them in real life. It traveled alot because of that.
 
It varies, there are definitely some internet friends that I would class as friends. Depends how interesting they are/experiences i've shared, personally i think the anonymity you have on the internet allows you to reveal more to internet friends than you would to irl friends, as it would be more awkward to say something to a "real" persons face.
 
It can be a little real at the most. But if you're true and the other person isn't, you'll be left wondering what the fu...
 
Ooh, good bump! I find that I'm often more open online than in most face-to-face conversations, if anything because it feels like there is less 'at stake'.
 
i feel like they're both more real and less real than in person friendships. talking online is a lot easier for most people than face to face, especially when you first start talking. for example, think about how much you know about someone after talking to them for the first time online compared to if you meet someone at a club. so you def get to know a lot about this person. however after meeting a couple people in person after only chatting on the internet, i find that they're different than how i thought they would be. not necessarily in a bad way, but the internet doesn't allow for any real first impressions, you may know a lot about them but you don't really know how they act in 'real' life
 
Most people I have met from the internet have no issue being genuine with me, for better or worse. It's amazing what one can say or do when you don't have to look someone in the eye.
 
I've met people online and even held relationships both romantic and friendly. It's cool because it's away from work and it's like getting to know the face behind the screen.

I have a few online friends in an email loop who I've been friends with for over 10 years.
 
I find it strange that anyone would think online friendships any less real than physical friendships. All my physical friends are online friends too. And a lot of my online friends (hopefully) I'll get to hang with physically one day too.

As far as the whole "You don't know anyone if you haven't spoken to them face to face" thing, that is ridiculous (to me). You could meet someone at a bar and they could feed you all the bullshit they wanted, I've known some people for years who I still don't trust and don't have a clue who they are and Ive been around them in person hundreds of times.

People share as much as they want to of themselves, online or not, and actually, I find my friendships that have started online tend to be deeper than a lot of my physical friendships, because we got to know each other on a purely communicative level and there wasn't some of the complications that can come with other friendships (such as friends from work, for example, where there is a lot of gossip and things of that nature).
 
This is something that really irks me. My mom is so weird about this.
She doesn't understand "talking to people on the internet" and wonders how I could trust anyone "on the internet"(its the way she says it) enough to talk to them. Wtf?

Does she not get that I'm on the internet. An (arguably-lol)normal, unpsychotic human being who simply enjoys discussing things with other people? Wouldn't it makes sense that most of these other people out there on the net are other normal, un-psychotic people looking for the same thing?
 
Internet relationships can be fun if kept in perspective. One can not be overly sensative as there are no visual cues or voice inflections, so you have to relate to the other person sitting across from you only with words. A sense of humor is needed for sure, you have to have a thicker skin, and you have to forgiving of misunderstandings. If you are not sure of the persons thought a good thing to do is to ask for clarification. I have been on the net since 95 starting with IRC chat and have found that somtimes a hook-up with another person actually comes kinda natural if you let it develop. In other words if you would like this person in life you would like their internet persona.
 
I started talking to a girl on the internet for about 2 years before we met, a year later we were going out. so i don't know.
 
i rate them.
some of my close friends wouldn't be my close friends if it wasn't for the internet.
 
I haven't the patience to maintain any of my online relationships.

In my life the two worlds--of my waking life and the internet--are separate compartments.

I do enjoy reading about, and occassionally chatting with people from different places. But I also enjoy doing that in the real, wherever I happen to be in the mood.

Right now, I'm not sure that internet friendships are more real. But that kind of thinking might be more indicative of my age and how I've approached socializing on the internet all these years.

I still remember life before cable television, cell phones, and the World Wide Web.

:)
 
Deja - I agree with you.

The internet is just another way to meet people. As some have already stated, there seems to be a tendency to be more real and open with things when hidden behind a computer, and some of the normal prejudices are non-existant. In the last couple of years, I have made several friends online that became good friends in real life, and they vary in age, race, careers, and income. Unfortunately, I'm not sure I would have given them the same opportunity had I met them in person. My life has become richer and more fulfilled with these friendships, and this positive experience has made me less likely to stereotype those I meet in "real" life.
 
As an aside: Monster_ZERO is an alternate account I created for fun.

I don't recall the password, so all is well.
 
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